


Reassurance

by livxxmarie



Category: Rhett & Link
Genre: First Kiss, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Power Outage, Teenagers, Thunder and Lightning, Thunderstorms
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-10
Updated: 2016-07-10
Packaged: 2018-07-22 16:59:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,974
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7446883
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/livxxmarie/pseuds/livxxmarie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Thunder is always a sign of somethin’ bad. Trees falling, cars crashing, erosion. Plus, it’s intangible. You can’t touch it. It’s just there, existing, making noise. It has no real purpose. Nothin’ good comes from thunder.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Reassurance

The night started off as all nights spent at Rhett’s house did—with food. The teenage boys had been left home alone in a house with completely stocked cupboards, but they were desperate for a change of scenery and decided to take Rhett’s car to head over to Campbell University for some Chick-fil-A. The rain had started to fall on their way back to the house, but neither teen paid mind to the weather. Rain was seasonable for such an early summer night.

They re-entered the desolate house with full stomachs, both laughing as they shook out their damp hair. Rhett glanced back at the rain that seemed to be growing more intense by the second and a flicker of worry passed through him. He suffocated it, determined on focusing his attention to spending time with Link.

The summer before their junior year of high school had just begun, and Rhett already felt like it was going by much too fast. Unreasonable anxiety filled his core at the thought of their time in high school ending in only two years. Usually, he was a futuristic thinker and embraced the thought of change with open arms. It was only recently that he realized what exiting their high school environment could do to his relationship— _friendship, Rhett_ —with Link.

Rhett held in a sigh at the thought of never having anything more than what he had now with his best friend, but knew that he would rather be estranged friends in ten years than to have nothing with the man due to some feelings he couldn’t shake. Crushes could fade. Rhett didn’t plan on risking his friendship, no matter how fleeting it could end up being, with a confession of something even he didn’t understand.

“Man, it is _pourin’_ ,” Link exclaimed, his eyebrows raised and his blue eyes glittering with excitement. Rhett repressed the urge to roll his eyes, a smirk on his face as he turned to the boy.

“For such a jumpy guy, you sure do love thunderstorms.”

“Dude, look at those clouds. Those clouds are awesome.”

“You’re a dweeb.”

“Shut up,” Link laughed, shoving him playfully. They stepped away from the window to sit on the couch and Rhett grabbed the remote, flipping through channels until he found what he was looking for.

“Yes! I knew there was a horror movie marathon on tonight.”

Link let out a groan in protest and leaned a tad closer to the blonde. Rhett tried to ignore the way his heart sped up and nearly rolled his eyes at himself when he felt his already-clammy palms begin to sweat.

“Man, you know I hate stupid movies like this.”

“C’mon. Don’t be such a scaredy cat.”

“Why can’t you pick somethin’ we both wanna watch?”

“Why can’t you watch _one_ scary movie with me?”

“What happened to compromise?”

“It’s not a compromise if I have to watch fake wrestling every single time it comes on the television, no matter how much I hate it, yet-

Rhett had been so focused on arguing with Link and getting his way that he didn’t notice the lights flickering until the entire house was out of power, the television a black screen. The shorter of the two huffed out a sigh, obviously still annoyed at their previous conversation.

“Well that’s just great.”

Rhett barely registered that Link had spoken, his eyes glued to the window in the living room, staring at the rain that was coming down in sheets. Link was typically the more anxious of the two, but as thunder cracked loudly and vibrated the house, Rhett jumped and felt his heart race. Link took notice and smirked teasingly, elbowing the blonde lightly to catch his attention.

“Now who’s the scaredy cat?”

Rhett opened his mouth to shoot something back, but was interrupted by a louder rumble and he jumped once again, shutting his eyes tightly. The brunette noticed the sincere fright in his friend’s composure and his expression morphed into one of warm concern. He shifted closer to Rhett and placed an awkward hand on his knee.

“Hey, it’s okay, man. Just a little storm. It’ll pass soon.”

“Wish the lights would come back on,” Rhett murmured, his eyes focused on the floor. He felt foolish and pathetic, anxious over a simple storm. Still, he couldn’t seem to relax.

_Especially when he’s looking at me like that._

“I’ll go find us some flashlights. You still got that one in your dresser next to your bed?” Link moved to get off the couch, already knowing the answer to the question.

Just as Link got up from his seat, thunder roared once more and was followed by a bright flash of lightning. Rhett, feeling panic raise from his stomach at the prospect of being alone for even a few seconds, grabbed Link’s arm to hold him in place.

“Uh, it’s not there anymore,” Rhett lied, face burning with embarrassment at his frantic action. Link’s brow furrowed for a moment before they rose again and he directed his attention to the kitchen.

“I saw one in the kitchen on top of your fridge when we walked in. I’ll go get that one instead.”

“No! I mean,” Rhett fumbled over his words, standing up abruptly. “I’ll go with you. You might not be able to reach it.”

Link gave him a look that clearly said _I’m six feet tall, you dork_ , but smiled reassuringly afterwards. His features had softened with his attitude and he seemed calmer, almost loving. Rhett’s heart leapt as he was met with warm eyes that carried a look he’d rarely seen on the younger boy. He was suddenly aware that he was still gripping Link’s arm and prepared to move his hand away when the brunette shocked him by taking his hand in his own and leading him to the kitchen.

“Look at that,” Link said, dropping Rhett’s hand as he reached for the flashlight with ease. He sent him a look of mock surprise. “I could reach it, after all!”

“Oh, shut up,” Rhett replied, trying and failing to repress a chuckle. He felt a sudden urge to reveal the logic behind his fear, mostly to convince himself that he wasn’t being irrational. “Thunder is always a sign of somethin’ bad. Trees falling, cars crashing, erosion. Plus, it’s intangible. You can’t touch it. It’s just there, existing, making noise. It has no real purpose. Nothin’ good comes from thunder.”

Link looked as if he wanted to disagree, but thought better of it and opted for a simple head nod instead. He handed Rhett the flashlight as thunder cracked beneath them again, and at the sight of the taller boy’s fright, he grabbed his hand once more.

“I feel like an idiot,” the blonde admitted, shaking his head and forcing a laugh as his cheeks burned red. Link squeezed his hand.

“You’re not.”

“I am, but it’s alright.”

“Honest. You’re afraid of a real life threat. I’m scared of a dumb movie. You don’t think I’m an idiot.”

“Not all the time,” Rhett replied jokingly. Link laughed and nudged him.

They bantered back and forth for a few moments more and the storm was beginning to die down. The boys made their way back into the living room, sitting on the couch again. Link never once dropped Rhett’s hand and they sat close to each other in the dark. Although Rhett had initially been the one who was fearful, it was now evident to the taller of the two that his best friend was also frightened. The storm had distracted him from the darkness of the room, but now that it was fading, Rhett noticed the way he kept inching closer to the blonde, eyes darting around the room nervously as a half-assed smile was plastered onto his face.

“Power should come back soon,” Rhett commented. Link made a face before responding.

“Might not be back until morning, though. They usually don’t get around to it this late at night.”

“You want the flashlight? My arm’s getting tired,” the blonde lied. Link accepted it graciously.

With an easier expression on his face, Link continued to make light conversation with Rhett. Twenty minutes later, they were discussing the teachers that they hoped to get during their junior year when the power flickered back on.

In the dark, their close proximity seemed ordinary, but as Rhett’s eyes filled with Link’s face, he noticed so many small details he hadn’t been able to admire this up close before. The blue eyes that Rhett felt himself drowning in broke away from him and Link’s cheeks were bright red. He dropped the blonde’s hand and took on a particularly rare expression of shyness.

“I told you so,” Rhett whispered, his voice barely audible. He had meant for it to come out with more humor, but he was too overwhelmed by his attraction to convey himself with a false attitude.

Link’s eyes flickered back to his and he spoke with a soft conviction.

“Do you wanna see if that scary movie marathon is still on?”

Rhett shot him a look of confusion, but was thankful to have a distraction from the thoughts that swarmed his brain. He nodded and turned on the television, finding the program he was looking for almost immediately and settling a bit further away from his best friend.

They were only a few minutes into the movie when Link pushed himself closer to Rhett, shrinking as the scenes became more suspenseful. There was a sudden jumpscare and Link shot up a bit, causing Rhett to tentatively take his hand. It seemed as if this was exactly what the brunette had been after, squeezing the hand gratefully and burying his face into the blonde’s shoulder.

Rhett’s heartbeat was threatening to bust open his ribcage and he _knew_ that Link could feel how damp his hand was getting. He waited exasperatedly for a commercial break and was relieved when one finally came, expecting Link to move away from his position nestled against the taller of the two. Yet, when he glanced over at his friend, blue eyes had been trained onto Rhett’s face. Link blushed a vibrant red, but never took his eyes off of Rhett’s. They stared at each other, almost as if they were sizing each other up. For what, Rhett wasn’t exactly sure.

“Can I try somethin’?” Link’s voice was quiet still and he looked more tentative than Rhett had seen him in years.

“Sure, bo.”

The shorter of the two waited a moment before moving, silently waiting for a confirmation of something that Rhett wasn’t sure of. Link licked his lips and Rhett’s eyes flickered to his mouth, blushing as he realized that the brunette had noticed the action. Barely a few seconds had passed before Link’s mouth was on his, kissing him delicately, and Rhett felt as if he had been lifted into space in a single moment.

Link pulled away before Rhett had time to respond to the kiss and studied the blonde carefully. Feeling invincible, the taller of the two sent his best friend a goofy grin and pulled him back in, kissing him with a bit more force. The brunette smiled into the kiss and his eyes dazzled as Rhett pulled back.

They kissed more for thirty minutes, giggling and exploring each other with newfound affection. When they finally settled back down to actually watch the movie that played, Link nestled himself into Rhett’s chest as they sprawled out on the couch, both still feeling a bit awkward as they buzzed with electricity and glee. A few moments into the movie, Rhett ran his hand down Link’s back to catch his attention.

“I was wrong, you know.”

“I know. What were you wrong about this time?” Link asked teasingly, smiling.

“Good things can come from thunder.”

**Author's Note:**

> Goodness, me. I intended on this being much shorter, but here we are. I hope you enjoyed reading it! I've always seen fics where Link has been the one afraid of thunder and storms in general, but I wanted to switch it up. I'm a big softy for them comforting each other. Feedback is encouraged!! Thank you for reading!!


End file.
